Edens Zero brings Hiro Mashima’s sci-fi manga to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC as a pretty straightforward action RPG. Developed by Konami, it follows Shiki and his growing crew as they blast through space, get into trouble, and chase after a mysterious being called Mother. Even if you’ve never read the manga or watched the anime, it’s easy to follow and jumps right into the action.
You’ve got two main ways to play. Story Mode takes you through the bigger moments from the series, while Exploration Mode lets you roam around Blue Garden, pick up side quests, and poke around for extra rewards. When you’re not out in the field, you’ll spend time back on your ship upgrading gear, adjusting your party, and getting ready for what’s next.
It’s not the most eye-catching RPG, but it moves at a decent pace and throws in enough variety to hold your attention. So, how well does it all come together?
Out to Find Mother
The story in Edens Zero kicks off with Shiki, a kind kid raised by robots on a forgotten theme park planet. When Rebecca and her blue cat companion Happy drop in, things get messy fast. After a few wild turns, Shiki decides to leave with them and explore space. His goal is simple: make friends and track down a mysterious being called Mother.
Story Mode moves at a quick pace. Each chapter touches on a different arc from the series, usually introducing a new face or conflict before jumping to the next. There’s a lot crammed in, but it never feels hard to follow. Even if you’ve never read the manga or seen the anime, you won’t feel lost.
The story plays out mostly through voiced dialogue and short cutscenes. The tone stays light, with more laughs than drama, which fits the pace. Not every character sticks with you, but Shiki and Rebecca carry things well. Their back-and-forth adds just enough energy to keep things moving between missions.
It’s not a deep story, but it does the job and keeps you engaged.
Combat, Customization, and Chaos
In Edens Zero, the gameplay splits between two main modes. Story Mode moves through linear missions packed with combat and cutscenes. Exploration Mode drops you into Blue Garden, where you can take on side quests, search for loot, and run into stronger enemies off the beaten path.
Combat starts out simple, but it gets more interesting once you unlock new characters and abilities. You can build a team of four and swap between them mid-battle. Shiki is all about close-range combos. Rebecca fights from a distance using twin pistols. Witch and Weisz bring in elemental attacks and turret setups that shake up your approach.
As you level up, you’ll earn points to unlock new skills and raise your stats. Gear and accessories also boost your defense, attack, or resistances to effects like burn or freeze. What kept me engaged was how each character encouraged different strategies. I wasn’t just spamming attacks. I was planning moves around who was in the party.
In one mission, I started with Witch to set enemies on fire. Then I jumped to Weisz to drop turrets, and closed the fight as Shiki with a gravity slam. It wasn’t super deep, but it was satisfying to pull off. Between missions, you head back to the ship. You can cook for temporary buffs, mess around with minigames, or upgrade your Ether Gear. Not everything here feels fully fleshed out, but it gives you something to check in on.
There’s a lot going on, even if a few parts don’t land.
Style Over Substance
The character designs in Edens Zero are solid, no doubt. But once you’re in control, the game starts to show its rougher side. Environments look a bit dated, and Blue Garden, while big, feels oddly quiet. You’ll spot other characters here and there, but most of them are just background. You can’t talk to them or do much, which makes the world feel pretty empty.
Performance-wise, it holds together for the most part. But when you’re flying across big open spaces, the frame rate can dip. Pop-in happens a lot too. Textures and objects sometimes load late, which gets distracting. Combat runs more smoothly, but the camera can be a hassle, especially when a crowd of enemies is on screen.
Cutscene animations are stiff, and facial expressions often don’t line up with what’s being said. It doesn’t ruin the scenes, but it does make things feel low-budget. On the upside, the gear you equip changes how each character looks. Once you unlock the Dress Factory, you can customize outfits however you want without losing stats. It’s a small thing, but it gives you a reason to tweak your loadout for more than just numbers.
Edens Zero Is Fun but Rough Around the Edges
Edens Zero doesn’t try to reinvent anything, but it mixes action, exploration, and a little fan-service in a way that works. Combat feels better once you’ve added a few more characters to your team and started playing around with their abilities. Swapping between them mid-fight adds a bit of strategy, even if the overall challenge stays low.
The story moves quickly. It doesn’t go very deep, but the way Shiki and Rebecca bounce off each other keeps things light. Some areas feel unfinished, especially outside the main missions. Visuals are dated, and performance can dip, which doesn’t help the open-world parts feel any more alive.
Still, I had fun with it. I wasn’t looking for anything heavy. Just something easy to drop into and enjoy for a few hours at a time. Running missions, testing out new combos, and picking up loot gave me enough to stick with it. It’s definitely not for everyone, but if you’re into anime-style games or just want something low-stress to play, it’s worth considering.
Edens Zero
Summary
Edens Zero mixes quick story beats with easy-to-grasp combat and some fun team-swapping. There’s plenty to do in its open world, even if the environments feel empty and the performance takes a hit. Unlocking new skills and gear adds some variety to fights, but things stay pretty laid-back overall. If you’re into the series or just want something casual to mess around with, it might be worth a look.
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